Nunes tripped Pennington up with a leg kick early in the first round and was the aggressor throughout the fight.

She repeatedly followed leg kicks with head blows early on, backing Pennington up to the edge of the Octagon and leaving the outside of her left leg bright purple and red from the repeated strikes.

After a pair of failed attempts while backed against the cage, Pennington scored a takedown of Nunes late in the second round to slow the steady onslaught from the champion.

But Nunes was never in trouble and continued to attack a weary Pennington throughout. Nunes delivered several knees to Pennington’s face in the fourth, leaving her faced bloodied.

Nunes, a Brazil native, invited Pennington to join her for the post-fight interview in the cage and spoke of her respect for her opponent in front of Rio de Janiero’s Jeunesse Arena.

“It was very hard for me this fight,” Nunes said. “It was the most hard of my career to fight this girl. Because we have the respect.

“When it comes to finish this bout, something I’ve dreamed about for so long, I have to do it. But right now. We are friends. We’re going to leave this cage. We’re going to have a beer and celebrate our friendship.”